*Originally published on Suite101.com in 2010; minor revisions made pertaining to Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
Before Paul Pierce joined the franchise, Reggie Lewis was
selected to carry on the Boston Celtics’ NBA Championship legacy.
Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish were the Boston
Celtics’ original Big Three. After Paul
Pierce and Antoine Walker were unable to lead the Celtics to an NBA
Championship, Pierce teamed up with Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to become the
new Celtics’ Big Three. However,
before Boston drafted Pierce from the University of Kansas in the
1998 NBA Draft, they selected local collegiate star Reggie Lewis from
Northeastern University in 1987.
Rising
Star
Reggie Lewis had garnered national attention as a star on
the undefeated Dunbar High School team from Baltimore, Maryland. Dunbar High School—with future NBA players Reggie
Lewis, Muggsy Bogues, Reggie Williams, and David Wingate—had won 50 games in a
row during one long stretch. Lewis carried this into his NCAA Basketball career, becoming Northeastern
University’s all-time leading scorer—and the ninth leading scorer in NCAA Division I Men's Basketball history—in four years of college basketball. Averaging 22.2 points per game, Lewis
had his jersey number 35 retired by Northeastern a couple years
after graduating.
In the NBA, Lewis quickly learned how to compete at
the professional level. After spending a
year as an understudy to Larry Bird, he took over as a starter for
the Celtics after Bird suffered a season-ending injury. Lewis became an instant all-around threat,
averaging 18.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.9 blocks
per game as well as shooting .486 from the field and .787 from the free throw
line during the 1988-1989 season.
After averaging similar numbers during the 1989-1990 season, Lewis became a full-time starter in the Celtics’ lineup. Playing in all 82 games during
the 1991-1992 regular season, he became the only player in Boston Celtics
franchise history to have 100 rebounds, 100 assists, 100 steals, and 100 blocks
in a single season. Lewis was
rewarded with Eastern Conference All-Star status in 1992.
Carrying his regular season success into the playoffs, Lewis became a model for consistency and clutch play. During the 1992 NBA Playoffs, Lewis
asserted himself as one of the best players in the NBA, averaging 28.0 points per
game in playoff series versus the Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers. This included three games scoring over 30
points and another game in which he scored 42 points in a thrilling
overtime loss to the Cavaliers at Boston Garden.
Team
Captain & Franchise Player
With Bird retiring due to injuries and Kevin McHale
pondering retirement, Lewis became the team captain and franchise player
for the Celtics. Lewis did not
disappoint, tying career bests with 20.8 points and 1.5 steals per game and
setting new personal bests with 3.7 assists per game and a .867 mark from the
free throw line, making and attempting the most free throws of his career (made
326 FT and attempted 376 FT). In
addition to ranking tenth in the league in free-throw percentage, he ranked fifth in total minutes played.
Unfortunately, the energy and effort needed to play
basketball professionally caught up to Lewis. After scoring 17 points in only 13 minutes of
Game 1 of the 1993 playoff series between the Celtics and the Charlotte
Hornets, Lewis collapsed on the court and was immediately taken to the
hospital. In his absence, the Celtics
hung on to win Game 1. However, without
their fallen team captain, Boston lost the next three games to lose
the playoff series to Charlotte 3-1.
Lewis Seeks Heart & Medical Diagnosis
There was a lot of confusion over what was wrong with Lewis’s health. Diagnoses from different
doctors conflicted, with most signs pointing to complications with his heart. Lewis appeared to have developed
a common condition known as “athlete’s heart”, in which his heart became
enlarged due to demanding physical activity.
The first diagnosis—which was made by a team of cardiologists
assembled by the Celtics’ team physician—recommended that Lewis was battling life-threatening cardiomyopathy, which is a condition of abnormal
thickening of the heart that disrupts heartbeat and blood flow during
physically demanding activity. It was
suggested that Lewis needed to retire from NBA basketball.
However, a second opinion that was sought from cardiologists
at the hospital where Lewis’s wife had worked revealed a diagnosis that he had a benign fainting condition known as neurocardiogenic syncope. As the Chief of this hospital’s Cardiology
Clinic, Dr. Gilbert Mudge publically declared that Lewis could resume
his NBA career.
With health and safety in mind, Lewis and his wife sought a
third opinion in Los Angeles.
Unfortunately, the cardiologists there were split about whether the
first or second diagnosis was more accurate.
Reggie Lewis, his wife, and the Boston Celtics were left to wonder if
the team captain and franchise player would ever play again.
Tragic Death
Seeking to cautiously continue his NBA career, Lewis
and his wife prepared to request that the Celtics provide a
defibrillator and a cardiologist for every game. Lewis also had outlined a strictly monitored
workout/playing plan, which would be overseen by Dr. Mudge. As had been recommended by the team of cardiologists in Los Angeles, Lewis began having his heart monitored.
Known for being soft-spoken, Reggie Lewis spoke confidently
with his coach from college that he would come back for the 1993-1994 season. However, in late July 1993, Lewis again collapsed—this time while shooting around at Brandeis
University. At age 27, he was pronounced
dead at the hospital less than three hours later.
Reggie Lewis’s legacy lives on, as the Boston Celtics have
honored him by retiring his jersey number 35.
A Track and Athletic Center in Roxbury, Massachusetts has also been
named in his honor. Overall, Reggie
Lewis was a hardworking, gifted, and humble NBA player whose career, life, and
tragic death will never be forgotten, as he carried out the Boston Celtics’ NBA
Championship legacy as best as he could.
Sources:
Basketball-Reference.com.
Accessed December 19, 2010.
Gorman, Christine and Sam Allis. “Did Reggie Lewis Have to Die?” Time. August 9, 1993. From Time.com. Accessed December 19, 2010.
Twiss, Jeff. “Remembering
Reggie…” July 2, 2003. Celtics.com (NBA.com). Accessed December 19, 2010.